48 THE FIRST NIZAM

the matter to the notice of the Emperor or to that of Amiru'l-
Umara Zulfiqar Khan.

One day, as chance would have it, Chin Qilich Khan was,
passing along a street with a few men of his escort, when he
met a large retinue of Zuhra, behaving as if the whole street
belonged to them. Chin Qilich Khan made a sign to his
people to step aside and let them pass. Zuhra's people made
sarcastic remarks, as they usually did if they happened to
come across the retinue of any noble. Chin Qilich Khan's men
did not relish this and wanted to chastise them. Chin Qilich
Khan tried his best to keep them under control in spite of
the severe provocation, when Zuhra herself, riding on an ele-
phant, approached the place where Chin Qilich Khan's men
were standing. She asked in an overbearing tone whose
retinue it was. On being told, she put out her head from the
curtain and called out, "Thou Chin Qilich Khan, surely
thou must be the son of a blind man". On hearing this Chin
Qilich Khan felt shocked by the indignity of her words. He
made a sign to his attendants to punish the people of her
retinue. The Turanl veterans, already indignant, fell upon
Zuhra's people and, after giving them a thorough beating,
dispersed them. They compelled Zuhra herself to quit the
elephant and escape barefooted to the palace of the Emperor,
which was not far off.1

After this incident Chin Qilich Khan went straight to the
house of Zulfiqar Khan, whom he had not yet visited after
his becoming the Prime Minister. The latter was surprised,
and desired to know what brought him there, knowing as he
did that it must have been something serious. Chin Qilich
Khan told him the whole story and made him realize that
such undignified treatment of the old nobility by upstarts was
simply intolerable.2 Zulfiqar Khan, who himself looked with
suspicion on the growing influence of Lai Kunwar's family,
applauded his behaviour and sent a message to the Emperor
saying that he himself agreed with Chin Qilich Khan in so
far as the honour of the old nobility was concerned. Lai
Kunwar and Zuhra urged the Emperor to take strong
measures against Chin Qilich Khan, but he dared not do

1 Siyaru'lrMut'akherin, vol. II, p. 386.
*2bid.; Iradat Khan, part IV, p. 81.